


A Lot to Say

by LordessScribes



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Multi, Oneshot, anyway, dumb cowboys, dumb ninjas, i love them, i love these two dorks, look ok there's a pathetic lack of mcgenji material s, reunion stuffs, so i had to make my own
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-09-06 22:38:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8772190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LordessScribes/pseuds/LordessScribes
Summary: Jesse's back on the base after the six year disbanding of Overwatch, everything is the same but that's all before a certain green robot ninja dude shows back up as well.also Lena breaks the mood like six times :D





	

    The base hasn’t changed a bit. Granted all the plant life is either overgrown or dying a pathetic yellow color, every inside surface is covered by an inch-thick layer of dust, every outside surface bears water stains and faded paint, bugs and rats skitter beneath his feet every step, and the whole place smells faintly of mildew. Despite all of this, it looks exactly the same. All of the buildings are still perfectly intact with little signs of weather wear, and the old flag is even still raised high. It’s kind of eerie, though. It used to never be this quiet, but Winston is steadily fixing that. The systems powering on, one by one, creates a soft humming noise in the background.

    It looks just like he remembers it, albeit a little shittier. “Home, sweet, home.” Jesse Mccree sighs, smiling slightly while he takes in the familiar sights.

    He’d gotten there half an hour ago with Pharah in tow. Well, actually she’d been the one towing and he’d just been hitching a ride. Either way, he’s here now. She’d gone to check the perimeter, flying a wide circle around the base to make sure they still hadn’t been detected. Overwatch is supposed to be disbanded. Can’t be found out now.

    The recall message had been sent out two weeks ago. They’d had a week to respond and another week to gather.

    Jesse had been in Indiana at the time, slightly drunk and passed out in a ratty motel when the communicator on his belt had suddenly lit up and shrieked the alert noise. Waking up very disoriented after falling out of the bed in shock wondering who the hell had gotten his comm code was definitely fun to remember.

    He’d sobered up quickly once he actually read the message.

    Which was then followed by Pharah’s message of ‘Wake ya ass up you gotta flight to catch, it’s me, I’m the flight. I’m on my way’. It had taken her another four days to reach him, but whatever. She hadn’t been prepared to take the smallest chance that he would try to skip out on the recall. Not that he would have considered it. As much as he lied to himself about it, Jesse really missed the old team and his friends.

    Touring his old haunts now really brought these thoughts to the surface.

    He’d already come across Reinhardt and Torbjörn on the base. They’d arrived two days ago and were helping to restore some of the rusty pieces of the base to their former glory. It’d probably be back in pristine condition before the week was out. Dr. Zeigler, too, was there. She’d been cleaning and restocking her med bay for almost the entire two weeks since the recall signal had been sent out. The base is in her home country, after all.

    She is currently dashing back out of the med bay’s many entrances to discard the useless equipment. Jesse catches her eye and saunters up to assist.

    “Howdy, Doc. Ya been clearin’ out that infirmary so long, it still not clean enough?”

    “It’s supposed to be a sterile environment, Jesse. It’ll take another week at least.” She brushes the hair off her forehead and wipes her dusty hands on her shirt. It’s nice to see her back in her signature lab coats instead of that silly angel costume. Though, he really couldn’t judge, considering his own usual attire.

    “Damn, glad I didn’t go into medical work.” Jesse smiles and takes a bag from her to help carry it to the incinerator.

    “It is, at times, exhausting. But nothing is more fulfilling.” She moves faster with less weight on her back.

    “Good t’hear.”

    “I’m sure your work is just as exciting, though.”

    “You’d be surprised.” She raises an eyebrow at him, smirk playing at the corners of her lips.

    “Oh? Was the west not wild enough for you?”

    “After six years? It became quite tame, Angela.”

    “HA!” Her familiar bark-like laughter had changed as much as her face after all this time. “I’m sure you had quite a time wrangling it, Jesse!” she chuckles again. Jesse really needed to get the secret to her unchanged face, whatever healer magic bullshit she did kept her quite literally unchanged for decades. Hell, she is in her fifties by now, maybe even sixties, but looks not a day older 30. A feat that Jesse, at 37, wishes he could claim.

    “Jesse!” he glances over at the sound of Winston to his left. The scientist seemed to be out of breath and coming from the main gate. “Glad you’re here! It was so nice of Pharah to give you a lift!”

    “Heh, right. Nice t’see you too, pal. You in a hurry?” Yes. Very nice of her. Totally.

    “Yeah, uhh, I wanted to get here ahead of time. Lena’s on her way.” He makes the sentence sound heavier than it really is, or so he thinks.

    “I’ll go close the med bay’s door.” Dr. Ziegler hurries off.

    “I see. That’ll be fun.” Jesse tosses the bags aside to be moved later. “Wait, is she just now arriving? I thought she’d’ve been the first one here.”

    “Oh, believe me, she was. She went to go pick up a friend from the airport. Doesn’t know you and Pharah are here, so, I was just coming to warn you.”

    “Can’t wait. The impending storm, eh?”

    “Ahaha, you have no idea. Reinhardt is the only one who stayed on his feet.” He adjusts his glasses.

    “Oh joy. Our own little twister in a trailer park, eh?” Winston’s eyes go wide with horrified realization of what had just been said.

    And, like she’d been summoned by that one phrase, the devil herself shrieked from across the courtyard and Jesse was suddenly on his back, tackled to the ground by the blue lightning bolt of death and crushing hugs.

    “AIIIIEEEEEEEEE!!!!!” She manages to squeal for a solid ten seconds, kicking her legs behind her in explosive, uncontained glee. “JESSEEEEE!!!!”

    “Aaand I’m on the ground. Howdy, Lena. I take it yer well?” Jesse awkwardly pats her back, unable to reach her head as his arms are still pinned to his sides in her anaconda death grip.

    “Jesse! Jesse! Jesse! You’re ‘ere! I didn’t know if you were coming, but you’re here! You’re back! I missed youuuuu!” While she narrates her excitement, he starts to slowly stand up without using his arms. Lena kind of just… hangs on and gets pulled vertical alongside him without letting go.

    “Ok, kiddo, hold yer horses. Glad t’see you too.” He waits a moment longer before trying and failing to pull her arms off. He just lets her cling for now. She tilts her neck to look directly up at him.

    Lena’s chipped-toothed grin reaches both ears and lights up the entire base.

    “Where ‘ave you been? Why’d it take you so long to get here, love?”

    “Indiana ain’t exactly a hop, skip, ‘n a jump away.”

    She giggles and squeezes him, if possible, even tighter. “I missed ‘earing you speak that country nonsense.”

    “What kinda European horseshit?”

    “Hee hee!” She finally releases him and he subtly massages his rib. Armor has no defense against Lena Oxton’s affections. “This is the best day ever! First Mei and now you! I’ve just missed everyone I-OH! Mei! Bollocks, I left ‘er at the gates. I’ll be back!” and as fast as she’d appeared, she disappears again in the direction of the gates.

    Winston and Jesse watch the place she’d just stood for a second before the former speaks up.

    “As usual, her ‘my Mccree is being southern’ senses are on point.” The scientist chuckles and straightens his glasses (which were knocked askew in the wind generated by the speeding pilot) before walking away, likely headed back to his lab.

    Jesse laughs once affectionately and goes to straighten his hat, before realizing that it isn’t on his head. His head feels weird without it, now that he’s noticed. He glances around at his feet, looking for where it had fallen.

    He doesn’t see it and is about to start panicking when a metallic cough from behind him gets his attention.

    The omnic is holding his hat. That’s the first and only feature he notices. He doesn’t really look at them until he’s flattened it back over his hair where it belongs.

    “Thank ya, kindly… uhh…”

    “Sir is fine!”

    “’O course. Thank ya, sir.” The omnic is young, his sleek and new design details clue him into this. How young is indeterminable. He’s wearing clothes, some kind of drapey sash-and-robe thing. Also, he’s not standing. He’s floating. Jesse decides that this is nowhere near the weirdest thing he’s seen so he just… ignores that detail.

    “Don’t think we’ve been introduced. Jesse Mccee. Professional Cowboy.” Jesse holds out his left hand to shake.

    “Sounds like a rewarding line of work.” He shakes the hand with his own. “Tekhartha Zenyatta. Just Zenyatta is fine.”

    “The pleasure’s all mine. Now, my memory might be failin’ me but, I don’t recall your face in the old team.”

    “I accompanied my student to this meeting, actually.” He leaned forward and drops his volume to speak in what is, undeniably a childish whisper. “He was rather excited.”

    “Master, do not spread lies.” This voice he recognizes. This voice he wouldn’t forget. Jesse turns around and the world kind of just… slows down.

    God, he hasn’t changed. Smooth plates of silver tinted armor amidst the faint green glow he emitted as he walked. His hips sway slightly with each step, expressing more emotion than the flat visor could. Angela would be so happy to know Genji was back. He’d always been her favorite patient and it was no wonder why.

    If only his face was visible. If only Jesse could see his eyes, pristine and dark and gorgeous. He remembers that. There’s something about his body language that’s different, though. Genji comes to stand beside the floating omnic (whose expressionless face seems almost glowing with pride now), arms folded.

    Shit, he’s staring, shit, he can’t be staring. Jesse lets his gaze flick to the floating omnic.

    “Hello, Jesse.” Genji seems to flicker with mischief. “You look old.”

    “You don’t.” fuck, did he just actually say that? Way to put your foot in your mouth, Mccree, now is really not the time. Ok, be quiet now.

    Genji seems to stiffen at this, pausing at something he clearly hadn’t expected. He takes a moment to gather himself before turning to Zenyatta.

    “Could you, ehm… gives us a minute?” Jesse isn’t the best judge of omnic expressions, but he is pretty sure Zenyatta doesn’t want to. He’s only half right. Zenyatta is no less than _living_ for this interaction (pun intended).

    He defiantly moves the bare minimum of three feet or so away, but Genji makes a shooing motion with his hands and he floats the rest of the way, sulking.

    They wait in a heavy silence for way too long after he’s disappeared.

    Jesse is dying. He is definitely not prepared to deal with this sober. Or at all. Or ever. Genji, of all people, is back. And Jesse is dying. Back here with the guy he may or may not have made out that one time before he left without addressing any of it, and he hadn’t seen since. Jesse had never been certain if Genji meant any of it. And Jesse is dying.

    “Sooo…. What have you been up to?” Genji speaks hesitantly, kind of shuffling his feet. Those little motions he makes give away his emotions easier than any facial expression ever could.

    “Oh… y’know…. the usual.” How eloquent. Really just. Coherent speaker of the year, Jesse.

    “Right, right. The usual.” They taper off into silence again for another short minute before Genji makes another attempt to keep talking.  “You got a new poncho.”

    “Uhh, yeah. Thicker fabric.”

    “Sounds warm.”

    “It really ‘aint.”

    “Well I don’t think you wear them right, anyway.”

    “Prolly not.” Jesse chuckles once, fiddling with the frayed end of said poncho.

    God this is the worst thing. The air is thick with whatever kind of history they have and the tension is making it hard to breathe. Of all the awkward situations Jesse had found himself in, this is definitely the worst. They can hardly look at each other. He, of course knows it’s because he feels warm and fidgety whenever he looks back at the masked samurai. Just avoid that feeling entirely and don’t look at him. Yeah. Sure. There's just… a lot to say and he’s not sure how to say it.

    But after a full minute of just uncomfortable silence and uncertain shuffling, Jesse finally breaks. “Genji, look, about what happened… I-“

    “GENJIIII!” whatever he’d been about to say is kind of thrown out the wagon when Lena returns.

    This time it’s Genji whom she’s tackled to the ground.

    “Ok. I am on the ground. Hello, Lena. Nice to see you, too.” Jesse feels a sympathetic ache in his own chest while Genji squirms in her ecstatic hold. He notices Zenyatta float back towards them at the sound of the commotion.

    “Genji! Love! It’s been way, way too long! You left before we disbanded I wasn’t sure if you got contacted at all!”

    “Winston leaves no stone unturned just in case.” Genji doesn’t try to stand all the way up and just settles for sitting with Lena still wrapped around his torso, kind of in his lap but he doesn’t seem to mind.

    “And I’m ‘appy for it!”

    “My, I couldn’t tell.” She leans back and holds him at arms length to stare at him in disbelief.  

    “’oo are you and what didja do with our Genji?” she demands, hands on her hips. Jesse is gay.

    “Whatever do you mean?”

    “You made a joke! With snark! Jesse are you ‘earing this?!” Lena looks back at the gunslinger. Jesse _is_ hearing this. And Jesse is gay. Genji makes a motion with his head that must mean rolling his eyes and he manages to collect himself enough to react.

    “I thought we needed t’say yer name three times b’fore ya were summoned?”

    “Nope! Just a new name! Hee hee!” she pulls herself off of Genji’s lap finally before reaching down to help him up too. Jesse is hilariously reminded of how short Lena actually is. Genji always seemed short to him, and she is a full six inches shorter than that. Minus her hair, of course.

    “I don’t understand.” Genji glances between, laughing.

    “It’s a reference to an older movie, love. Don’t worry about it!” Lena _is_ infamous for liking all things retro. Old movies, classical music, museums, etc.

    “Ah, ok.” Genji nods.

    Jesse hears a scuffing noise from behind and glances back to see a woman hovering a few yards back, looking too intimidated by the three returning agents to join, but also incredibly fond of Lena. He faintly has a chance to think that her coat is way too thick for this weather before his attention is pulled back to Genji.

    “So what all have you been up to? Six years later and you still look brand new!” Lena gleefully prompts.

    “I could say the same to you, you have hardly aged a day.”

    “You should see Angela.” Oh, good. Jesse wasn’t the only one who’d noticed her perfect complexion.

    “Is she here?”

    “Oh, yeah! Probably hiding from me in the med bay. She needs some ‘elp clearing it out but insists that I not be the one to do so. Can’t imagine why, I’ll get the job done in a snap.”

    “I’m sure she has her reasons.”

    “She’ll be thrilled to see you, though.”

    “And I her. Much has happened since we parted ways.”

    “I’ll say.” Lena giggles. “Who’s your friend?” she looks up to Zenyatta standing at Genji’s shoulder, patiently waiting to be introduced. Jesse doesn’t notice, but her expression stiffens the tiniest bit.

    “This is my master, Zenyatta. I spent much of my time in Nepal with him. I’ve learned much about myself and this world from that time. I owe him much.”

    “Oooh. A pleasure t’ meet’cha, Zenyatta, sir!” Lena beams and shakes his hand, but something about her seems off, like she’s trying to hid being wary of him. “Seems we’re all bringing a companion back ‘ome with us!” saying this, she seems to remember the thing she’d dashed away to retrieve earlier. “Blimey! I’m awful! Mei, love! Come on over!”

    The woman in the coat looks up and shuffles forward at the call. Lena beams and wraps an arm around her waist, ignoring the faint blush on her cheeks.

    “Jesse, Genji, Zenny-oh wait sorry is that ok? Can I call you Zenny?” she looks to each of them in turn and Zenyatta nods at the nickname. “Ok, fantastic! Everyone, this is Mei-Ling Zhou, my pal! Met ‘er two years ago at my local museum.”

    “Hello!” Mei smiles pleasantly and waves at them all, she’s wearing gloves for some reason.

    “Howdy lil’ lady.” Jesse tips his hat at her and Genji steps up to shake her hand.

    “A pleasure!” Zenyatta shakes her hand next.

    “You would not, by any chance, be related to the teacher, Mondatta, would you? Sorry for asking but your appearance is quite similar.” Mei asks, recognizing his style of dress and mechanical features.

    Lena noticeably swallows and glances away, her face darkening over and pursing her lips.

    “Why, yes I am. Glad you know about him! Did you follow his teachings?” Zenyatta seems happy to talk about whoever this Mondatta character is. Jesse vaguely remembers hearing something about him but just barely. He didn’t really keep up with the international news himself.

    “I did not keep up with them while he was alive, but I have read his many writings and seen his talks. He really was amazing!” Mei doesn’t notice Lena remove her arm and draw her shoulders in, but Jesse does. He faintly wonders what she’s got against this Mondatta.  

    “He was a great man; you know what people say, ‘Good men die young’.” Zenyatta says solemnly.

    “Excuse me, I need to go tell Winston something. You all keep catching up.” Lena turns away, lip trembling and face angled so nobody can see past her goggles. She jogs off in the direction of the lab, not looking back to see if anybody tries to stop her. Mei watches her go for a second with concern and confusion, but decides not to pursue her.

    There’s an uncomfortable pause where everyone watches her disappear into the building, her odd behavior kind of broke the mood.

    Jesse decides to try and pick the conversation back up. “Genji! Ya said you were in Nepal for a while, but I can’t fathom how ya even ended up there.”

    “Oh, well, that is a long story. Perhaps best saved for another time.” Genji replies, shrugging noncommittally. Internally, Jesse thinks that he could listen to him talk all day, whatever the story.

    “Fair enough.” He replies out loud. Control your thoughts, Jesse.

    “It is so cold in Nepal, though. Why would you stay there?” Mei inquires with a tilt of her head.

    “I have no skin.” Zenyatta replies stiffly.

    “O-OH! Sorry! Sorry, so sorry. I didn’t mean it like that- I just- sorry-“ she stumbles, rapidly trying to make up for the mistake, but Genji comes to her aid.

    “It’s ok, it’s alright. Really. I was cold most of the time, yes.” He pats her arm reassuringly, flashing some kind of salty glare at Zenyatta beneath his visor.

    “Uh… right… and you… you _can_ feel cold?” she blinks at him in confusion for a second.

    “Yes. I am cyborg, not omnic.” Jesse raises his eyebrows at Genji’s tone. Is he… better about this? He sounds genuinely ok with it now! When did that happen? Actually, no, he sounds… almost proud to admit this.

    “OH! Sorry, sorry, my bad.” Mei nods in understanding, ducking her head and brushing her hair aside in an awkward sort of fidget.

    “I am well aware of my appearance; you need not apologize for the misconception.” Genji sounds like he’s smiling. Jesse wishes he could see his face.

    “Ya seem like yer from somewhere cold, though.” Jesse turns to her to take his eyes off of Genji.

    “Antarctica, yes. But that doesn’t mean I like being cold.” Mei quickly sheds her embarrassment in favor of a devious tone. “Who does? That’s why I’m wearing my coat all the time.”

    “But, don’tcha ever get too hot in it?”

    “Haha, no. It has a temperature regulating circuit running through it that keeps me cool _and_ warm. Though I mostly prefer it warm, haha.” She pulls the hood slightly away from her neck to show them the tiny wires crisscrossing in between the layers of fabric.

    “Fascinating… did you make the coat yourself?” Zenyatta leans closer to better see it.

    “Yes, technically. An old friend of mine created the circuit, I just put it all together.” She tucks the fabric back around herself snugly.

    “That is still impressive.”

    “Thank you. I thought it looked pretty _cool_.” it’s a terrible and very easy to make pun, but she still looks smugly proud of it. Zenyatta seems to take it as a challenge.

    “Hmm, yes, simply snow-sational!” Genji shakes his head in exasperation at his master.

    Mei snickers, “I am ice-cstatic that you think so!” oh, look at that, Jesse thinks, she can make decent puns, too.

    “Ah, Icey what you did there!”

    “You are going to be the death of me, Zenyatta. As if one betrayal in my life was not enough.” Jesse is very taken aback when he hears Genji say this, but nobody else seems to pick up on his confusion. Since when did Genji make jokes about his past like that?

    “Don’t be so cold, Genji.” Mei grins wide.

    “Yeah, do not ice-olate yourself from us!” Zenyatta jumps on board.

    “This recall was a mistake.” The cyborg groans.

    “I don’t catch your drift, does this make us the winters?”

    “Go to hell.”

    “Don’t you mean hail?”

    “ARgghhhhh….” Mei can’t form any more puns though her laughter, clutching her belly and curled forward. Zenyatta’s chuckling too, but he seems to be unwilling to let up on his student.

    “Water you so stirred up about, Genji?”

    “That is it. I’m gone. Jesse, let us go find something to dust until everyone else shows up. You two have fun.” Genji grabs his arm and starts to stomp away from the two hysterical comedians.

    Jesse hesitates just long enough for them to hear him add one more log to the fire. “Yeah, let’s flake!”

    “Oh my god!” Genji looks at him like he’s just announced a tragedy. Jesse winks down at him.

    Chuckling with the two they’d just marched away from. Genji lets go and continues to walk, Jesse keeping up easily, his longer legs actually making him need to slow down for Genji, despite him seeming to lead the way.

    Genji fumes for a solid minute and a half while he makes his way around the corner of the main facility and past a series of operational ventilation systems. Jesse is once again reminded of how similar everything is. He remembers being regularly chased outside here by Gabriel whenever he tried to smoke inside.

    “That Mei is a hoot n’ a half. Lena sure knows how to pick ‘em.” They reach a sort of courtyard for training and Genji stops to look up at him.

    “It is nice to know Zenyatta will fit in.” Jesse nods and realizes belatedly that they are, once again, alone.

    He’s not sure how to proceed so he reaches for a cigarette to fill the empty silence.

    Genji watches him light it with some kind of fascination. “I got better, but it looks like you stayed the same.” He says softly, almost wistfully.

    “Y’can’t get better than this!” Jesse holds the cigarette between his teeth and makes a wide gesture to himself.

    “Mm, you are right about that.”

    Jesse chokes on his next breath.

    Genji’s shoulders shake with barely contained chuckles while he furiously bangs on his chest to clear his lungs. “Ack-! Genji don’t laugh, I might be dying!”

    Genji folds his arms and leans on one hip. “You can dish it out, but can’t take it?” 

    “I thought we were ignoring that.” Jesse holds the now slightly crumpled cigarette in his hands now, taking a few breaths and not letting himself remember his earlier slip up.

    “Nope.”

    Jesse scratches his cheek and returns the cigarette to his teeth. “I, uhh, figured you didn’t catch that.”

    “It was only a few minutes ago.”

    “Haha, riiight. Gettin’ old I guess.” He subtly tries to blow the smoke away from Genji’s face, though he really didn’t need to since he had filters in his visor.

    “Have you not seen Reinhardt lately?”

    “HA! True! He’s ancient at this point but still ain’t done kickin’.”

    “Old as dirt, you might say.”

    “And neither ‘m I. Old but gold!” Jesse gestures again to himself, more specifically his faded armor. Genji scoffs and rolls his eyes (or tilts his head in a circle like he’s rolling them).

    “I will never be free.”

    “Like you’d ever wanna actually leave.”

    “I just got here,” he glances away before adding, “also… you’re here.”

    Jesse freezes and decides to put out the cigarette against the wall behind him before he can choke on it again, avoiding Genji’s eyes all the while. “Well, ain’t you a flatterer.”

    “Like you didn’t just try the same thing earlier.” Genji steps closer to lean against the wall with him.

    “Fair.”

    Genji pauses, fiddling with the plate on his forearm for a minute. “I mean it though.”

    Jesse is dying. He really doesn’t know how to proceed with this, unused to being on the receiving end of that sort of compliments. He is positive his face is warm by now and really hopes Genji can’t see that through his visor.

    “Jesse…” Genij hunches his shoulders forward, trying to find the right words for a second, it seemed he'd been brooding over this for awhile and had finally found an opportunity to say it all. “I’ve spent a long time thinking about what all happened back then... everything with my brother, with overwatch… with you. I’ve… come to terms with a lot of things that I couldn’t six years ago. I’ve accepted a lot of things.”

    Jesse is silent, afraid to breathe and break whatever spell has come over Genji. He really has come so far, it’s almost astonishing. He used to be so withdrawn and quiet, easily snapping at people and incredibly sensitive around almost everyone. Now he’s opening up and actually talking about himself. Whatever Zenyatta did in the last six years seems to have completely transformed him.

    As if Jesse isn’t blown away by this new Genji enough, he reaches up to undo the latches at the back of his mask. A slight hiss of compressed air is heard and he pulls the faceplate away.

    He retracts his earlier statement that Genji looked unchanged. He looks as captivating as ever, but even more so. He stares up at Jesse with those eyes that had haunted him for over six years. His face is inhuman in every possible way, deep scars mar every inch visible, cutting divots into his cheeks and nose and nicks out of his eyebrows, making him seem distorted and twisted. But then there are his eyes, which cancel out any sign of ugliness in the rest of his face. Dark amber like gold and sharp as his katanas, cutting right through Jesse’s defenses and sending his brain spiraling to a comical halt.

    He doesn’t maintain eye contact for more than a second, just long enough to scramble his thoughts and leave their image in his mind. Genji’s face is so important, scarred up and weird but it’s his and its perfect.

    “Jesse.” He tilts his head to better look at him, speaking low. “Six years ago, I was not in a good place for a lot of the things I felt. It would have been unfair to both of us had I acted upon any of these feelings.” He’s not looking at him, but kind of at the ground, so Jesse has another chance to stare at his eyes. “And I wish I hadn’t acted upon them when we parted. It left me feeling like I had taunted you and left you confused without explanation. It was not fair of me to do that. I am sorry.”

    He’s speaking, and Jesse is definitely listening, but somehow the words aren’t really sinking into is brain. Why on earth is Genji apologizing? Jesse barely remembers his departure, honestly. It’s one of those thing that happened so fast he really hadn’t processed it until days later, and he’d sure as hell never held it against him.

    Genji pauses and closes his eyes for a second, tensing his shoulders with a deep breath. Honestly, he’s such an open book without his visor, Jesse can practically hear his mirrored thunderstorm of thoughts and emotions. “I just want you to know that… whatever you wished then can now happen, if you want. But also keep in mind that if you have moved past it, I am ready to do so as well and will accept your decision because-“

    Jesse kisses him before he can finish.

    It’s short and soft, and fuck why the fuck did he just do that?! Genji’s eyes are wide and he’s frozen in place. Abort. Undo. Backspace.

    Jesse opens his mouth to backpedal but Genji is suddenly up on his toes, kissing him again, for real this time. His eyes slip closed without thinking.

    Time stops again. Nothing really matters except that Genji is here, kissing him. His upper lip is soft while the lower, synthetic lip is rubbery, one hand has found his shoulder and the other is balanced on the wall. Jesse’s hands are cradling his face, thumbs brushing over the scar tissue slowly, mapping out his perfect face and memorizing it.

    Genji’s lips move slowly against his, tilting his head slightly to deepen the kiss. Jesse keeps up but lets him lead. He himself is a decent kisser but… it’s kinda hard to compete with Genji right now. He moves slow and certain and his breath is cool on his nose when he breathes out. He smells faintly like some kind of air freshener, like the really strong kind that’s used to cover gasoline smells but faded. Jesse’s senses are overwhelmed.

    Genji’s arms move to tangle in his poncho and hold him closer and Jesse responds by pulling his body against his chest, the cowboy’s large build encasing the cyborg’s. Six years and nothing had changed. Jesse still loves Genji and still wants to see him happy with himself and comfortable among friends. Still wants to hold him like this.

    Only now all of that is real. Everything has changed.

    Genji’s arms tighten around him a fraction more before he finally breaks the kiss to breathe. Neither of them let the other out of his arms. Genji’s breath is warm on Jesse’s chin. Oh right, he should open his eyes now.

    If Jesse thought Genji was beautiful before, that’s nothing compared to now. Now Genji just kissed him and his cheeks are noticeably pink behind the scarring. The scarring that looks like waves of the ocean, red under the setting sun, turning him into some otherworldly being made of water and sky. His eyes are the suns, gold and reflective on the waves, wide and glazed over with awe. He looks ethereal and Jesse never wants to look away again.

    If only the universe gave a shit about what Jesse wants.

    “AEIGH!” The moment is shattered in an instant along with the water heater to their immediate left, when a big blue metal blur slams into it at full velocity. It explodes on impact with a huge, obnoxious noise and a massive cloud of steam.

    Genji tears his arms out from under Jesse’s poncho in a frantic scramble to return his visor to his mask, which he does, but not before getting one hand badly stuck in the red woven fabric, still around his shoulder. 

    “Lena! What the shit?!” Pharah’s voice screeches from the rubble of the tank.

    “FAREEHA! YOU’RE ‘ERE TOO! Nobody tells me anything anymore! AIEEE! You’ve grown up so much look at how tall you are! You’re taller than me now, I’d gather!” it sounds like Lena had launched herself into the air via her teleporter and tackled Pharah mid-flight.

    “I’d be taller if you’d get the hell off me for ten seconds! Reinhardt’s gonna skin us for giving him more work, y’know.”

    “Don’t care. Gotta hug!”

    “Guhhh!” There’s a clanking and the armored woman manages to heave herself upright, Tracer still wrapped around her middle with both legs and arms like a baby chimpanzee.

    Genji begins to frantically try to untangle the fibers of Jesse’s poncho from the joints of his fingers to no avail. Jesse tries to assist but it looks like they’re going to need to use tweezers or scissors or something, which sucks because he likes this poncho.

    “Hold yer horses, lemme help.” The noise from their left halts and two heads slowly turn their way. “Shit.” As usual, Lena’s senses were on point, Pharah’s perfectly tuned to hers.

    It looks… about as bad as Jesse thinks. Genji’s hand is stuck in his poncho just behind his shoulder, the material crumpled and pulled up around his neck from their struggle. Their faces are inches apart and the two women don’t buy any excuses for a millisecond.

    Like they’re synched, duel Cheshire-cat grins spread across their face and they meet eyes. “OoooOOoooOOOoooOO~!” Identical mockery harmonizes. Jesse wants to crawl into a hole and die.

    “My, my, my.” Pharah tuts, sauntering up to them (Lena is still clinging to her side like a koala). “We aren’t... interrupting something? Are we?” Jesse’s eyes tell her if she doesn’t back off she’ll be in a heap of trouble, but she ignores it.

    “Nothin’ at all! We were jus’ talkin’.” He says quickly.

    “Yes! Talking!” Genji nods. Jesse can imagine that, beneath his visor, he’s a blushing mess. He can also imagine that he himself is no better. Screw this cyborg for having a cop out when it came to facing embarrassment.

    “Mmm, yes. It certainly looks like talking.” Lena leans towards them, relishing in watching them squirm. Zenyatta would fit in here no doubt.

    “You startled us and I fell into Jesse’s poncho. That is all.” Genji insists, tugging hopelessly at his hand, still caught.

    “Right. Must have been quite a fall to get so stuck, wouldn’t you say so, Lena?” Pharah seems to have forgotten that she’s got a passenger, or she just doesn’t care.

    “And how noble of Jesse to catch him, doncha think?”

    Jesse splutters, “Like you pair got any room to tease! Ya crashed outta the goddamned sky!”

    “Yeah, but we didn’t crash snogging!”

    “ _Lena_!”

    They both explode in laughter; Lena has to finally put her feet on the ground so they can support each other through their hysterics. He pulls his hat down over his face to try and hide the redness. Really, this is what Jesse gets for letting Pharah bring carry him across the globe. Next time he’ll just stow away on a drug dealer’s boat or something else honorable. Anything would be more dignified than this.

    Pharah’s still laughing too hard to stand straight when she says she’s going to ask Angela for scissors or something.

    Jesse might’ve shot her were it not for Genji’s hand pressing into his shoulder.

    “Ahahaha, ohh, hoooo… Oh loves, c’mere and let me ‘elp you.” Lena wipes moisture from the corners of her eyes beneath her goggles before pulling off her gloves and pushing aside the layers of fabric to better see the mess they’re stuck in.

    With her assistance and smaller fingers, they’re able to get Genji free with minimal damage to his poncho, thankfully. On their way to the lab where Winston, Zenyatta, and Mei had gathered, Lena promises to not spill their secret. Jesse figures it won’t matter with Phara around, but appreciates the gesture.

    Genji’s fingers entwined with his own don’t hurt to settle his fuming mood either. They’ve still got a lot to say to each other, but at least now they’ve got time. Time to figure each other out, time to catch up, time to be together. Walking back inside the facilities, Jesse thinks, the base really has gotten old over the years. Everything’s changed. 


End file.
